Tales from the Kokiri Forest
by G01den Unicorn 11
Summary: As the world turns, and kingdoms rise and are unmade, a peaceful tribe of eternal children play in a mysterious forest. Collection of oneshots about the Kokiri.
1. Chapter 1

The cover art for this story was done by Maga-Link of DeviantArt. You can find a link to her other work on my profile.

My beta reader for this is XandraFox, author of _The Customer is (Not) Always_ _Right_. You should go check it out when you're done with this. Thank you! :)

* * *

><p><strong>Story I<strong>

In a tiny corner of Hyrule lies the Kokiri Forest. A lost traveler from a far-away kingdom might expect the forest to be bustling with workers from Hyrule Castle Town, or perhaps from the quaint Kakariko Village. A forest, after all, is a prime spot for hunters or trappers to catch game, or for lumberjacks to fell mighty trees for Hyrulean carpenters to use. A serjeant of the Hylian Army might see an opportunity to conduct survival training, or criminals might see an escape from their sentence and live out their lives in peace.

But this forest is special. Folk know better than to disturb its tranquility, though few can agree on why. In a run-down tavern, a crusty guardsman, aged long past his usefulness, tells any who will listen that the Sheikah placed a curse on it, condemning all who entered to live a half-life as a monster. A proud big brother tells his siblings of a race of mischievous imps who dwell within its embrace. For a pint of ale, a priest in training confides that the entire forest lies under Farore's personal protection.

Few suspect the truth, and those who know keep quiet. After all, what is there to say about a village of eternal children?

For that is the true secret of Kokiri Forest, or at least the heart of it. For ages untold, the Kokiri tribe has made a secret, happy existence within, never aging, never changing. Whether the children named the forest, or the forest named the children, none can now say.

One of these green-clad children stood in her crude little hut, cheerily squeezing juice out of a plant with jagged green leaves. Her hair was the same bright green as her garb, and her eyes sparkled with the charming exuberance of childhood.

"I'm just about ready," she announced, dabbing at the saucer of plant juice with a brown cloth. "It might sting a bit as first, but in the morning you'll be right as rain."

"Thanks, Saria," mumbled the blond-haired boy sitting in the middle of the room. His right hand wrapped around his elbow, and a hint of blood peeked out from between his fingers.

"Are you okay, Link?" Saria asked. She grabbed the saucer of dirty-green plant juice and sat down beside the injured arm. "You're usually more talkative than this."

Link squirmed in his chair, keeping his eyes fixed downward.

"I'm fine," he said, barely audible.

Saria sighed and gave him a comforting squeeze around his shoulders.

"You know you can talk to me about anything, right? We're friends, after all," she said. "Friends take care of each other, even if they're just having a bad day."

When she saw that Link wasn't going to respond, she pried his fingers from around his elbow and began applying the poultice. He gasped as the wet cloth touched his skin, but then his shoulders sagged, and he returned to his odd sullenness.

She wished he'd just say what was wrong. Years ago, when the old woman had somehow brought the strange child into their forest, the Great Deku Tree himself had charged her with his care. Seeing him just moping around like that made her feel like she was failing. But she also knew that trying to pester him would just make him more upset. So she tended to the wound she _could_ do something about and put on her best smile.

"There we go!" she said, knotting the damp cloth tight against the scrape. "It'll be all be better by morning."

"Thanks Saria," Link said. He looked up, and his lips twitched in a pathetic imitation of what he apparently thought was a smile. "Sorry I'm so gloomy."

She hugged him again.

"We all have our bad days. We just have to make sure tomorrow's better. Now, how about a picnic?"

Link looked back down. Her smile faltered.

"Um... Can I just kinda go for a walk and eat by myself today?"

Saria hesitated. There was nothing in the Lost Woods or Kokiri Forest that could possibly hurt him, not with the Great Deku Tree keeping out the evils of Outside. But he just seemed so small! He was only seven; his head didn't even come up to her shoulders.

He grew quickly, though. Already, he easily kept up with her in a race. Soon he would overtake the fastest Kokiri, she had no doubt. The forest was his home, as much as it was hers. Why shouldn't he walk about?

"Don't be out too late," she said. "And if you get lost-"

"Follow the music of the forest," he finished for her. "I _know_, Saria."

She chuckled and gave him a playful shove toward the door.

* * *

><p>"Hey pipsqueak! Did Saria kiss your boo-boo and make it all better?" taunted the nasally voice.<p>

Link kept walking, doing his best to ignore the sandy-haired jerk.

"You know, fairies have healing magic. Why don't you just ask- Oh, that's right. You don't have one! Hah, what a loser."

Controlling his face took every ounce of Link's control. His cheeks quivered, and he bit down on his lip to try to hold back the tears. Mido was the only Kokiri besides Saria who ever bothered to talk to him, and Link just wished he'd leave well enough alone.

"Aw, is the little baby gonna cry? What's wrong, your boo-boo hurting?"

Link tucked his head and ran, not bothering to look where he was going. He just needed to get away. Mido always did that, always made fun of him, always treated him like he didn't deserve to breathe.

But the worst part was, he was right. About everything. Link _didn't_ belong in the forest. Why else would he be smaller than everyone? Why else would he not have a guardian fairy? Why else did everyone but Saria and Mido refuse to even look at him?

He ran until exhaustion took him, and then he forced himself a few more paces onward, staggering down some small path, well-worn by use. Link looked back. No Mido. Good. He let himself collapse against a tree and tried not to cry.

Some time later, he looked up to see a little brown squirrel watching him. The creature's paws were frozen comically in front of him, as though grasping an invisible acorn.

"Hey little guy," Link said. He reached into the folds of his tunic and broke off a piece of the black loaf of bread that was meant to be his lunch. "You hungry?"

Link tossed the bread, and the squirrel scampered halfway up the nearest tree so fast Link could barely even see it. The critter clung to the bark, its tiny head twitching around to look at the the offering, and then back to the canopy above.

"It's food," Link said. "I'm not gonna hurt you." He knew the animal couldn't understand him, but something about it made Link want to protect it. The squirrel seemed so terrified, trapped in a world where everything was so much bigger and more dangerous than him.

The boy threw another piece of bread closer to the tree. The squirrel's tail jerked, but he remained where he was.

Maybe the squirrel was shy, Link thought. He probably wouldn't want someone staring at him while he was trying to eat, either. Yes, that was it. He'd just ignore the squirrel until it came down. Smiling at his clever solution, the boy turned to the side and pretended to stare off into the forest. He still watched the squirrel out of the corner of his eye, though. Poor little guy was just too cute.

Just as his legs started to fall asleep, he heard movement. He carefully controlled himself as the squirrel made its way back down the tree. It simply wouldn't do to startle him at this point. It picked up the nibble of bread in its paws and began nipping at it. Briefly, Link wondered if this was what Saria felt when she tried to take care of him.

Once the animal finished his snack, Link turned again to face him fully. He froze again, but he did not scamper off. Link kept smiling and slowly, gently threw out another piece of bread. The squirrel only waited a few seconds before scampering over to eat.

At that point, Link knew he had a new friend. The rest was just details and hard work. He rose and slowly back away, leaving offerings of bread every few feet. The squirrel followed. When Link only had half the loaf left, he sat down and began to eat what remained of his lunch.

The squirrel stared at him as he ate. Link did his best not to stare back. The animal stood so rigid, Link thought he might pass out. He did not want to startled the squirrel further. But he did break off another piece of bread. Instead of throwing it, he placed it in front of him, right by his knee.

When he had finished eating the bread, the squirrel still hadn't moved. Oh well. He probably wasn't hungry enough to risk it after all that bread. But Link would be back tomorrow, and he'd get another shot.

* * *

><p>A week later, he had coaxed the squirrel onto his shoulder.<p>

"Well hello there, my little friend." He reached out with his opposite hand to pet it, but the creature leaped off, tearing at his skin with his sharp claws as he did so.

"That wasn't very nice," Link scolded. But it didn't hurt that much, and Saria had been teaching him how to make that healing salve. He couldn't really blame the little guy; if _he'd_ seen a giant hand coming at his head, he'd be terrified too.

"Maybe next time," he told the squirrel, then stood up to go find the herbs that Saria had taught him about. He didn't have a pestle or a saucer like Saria had, but he could make something good enough, one way or another. He could crush up the stuff with a rock, or something. Then he could tell Saria how clever he'd been, and oh how proud she'd be!

As he bent down to pluck some leaves from a heart-shaped plant, he caught soft chattering behind him. He turned, and beamed to see his new friend.

"Sorry little guy, I'm all out of bread today. Maybe I can get Saria to make you a little extra next time." He paused. "I can't keep calling you 'little guy' all the time. What's your name?

The squirrel tilted his head, as if confused.

"How about Twiggy? Nah, that's stupid. Oh, I know: Rocky!"

Rocky chittered away at something, and Link could only assume he was pleased.

"Rocky and Link, best pals. Think it'll stick?"

Rocky scampered up the nearest tree.

"Yeah, sounds a little off to me, too. But you'll get used to it, you'll see."

Link continued to visit Rocky every single day. It didn't take long for the squirrel to start waiting for his arrival. Then they'd go on walks together. Sometime Rocky would ride on his shoulder—even nuzzle against his cheek!—and other times he would just follow in the treetops, leaping gracefully from branch to branch.

One day, Link found Rocky waiting with an acorn in his little paws. He held it out and chattered something.

"You keep that, Rocky. I gotta eat people food. I don't like acorns."

Rocky persisted.

"All right, I guess we'll share it," Link said. He looked around until he found two rocks that satisfied him. Then he sat down, cracked the acorn open, and began to grind it into a paste. It wouldn't make all that much, but that probably didn't matter if you were a squirrel.

The resulting mess was barely a speck on the rock.

"Well, here goes nothing," he said. He picked a bit up with his finger and shoved it in his mouth, trying to swallow as fast as possible before he could actually taste it.

"Yum!" he lied. "Thanks Rocky!"

Rocky said something in his adorable squirrel language, then began eating at what remained on the rock.

"Say, how'd ya like to meet Saria?" he said. "She's my other best friend." He'd tried to tell her about Rocky before, but she'd just kind of nodded in that absent way of hers and continued crafting the new jade-green dress she was working on. But there was no way she could possibly ignore a real live squirrel!

Link patted his shoulder, now padded with an old cloth. Rocky scampered up, they booped noses, and off they went to Saria's house.

* * *

><p>"Hey, Mr.-No-Fairy! What's that on your shoulder?" Mido whined as Link passed through the quiet village.<p>

Link's first instinct was to hide, to pull Rocky off his shoulder and shoo him off into the deep woods before Mido had yet another thing to poke fun of him about.

His left hand froze as it reached up to the squirrel. No. He would not hide. Rocky was his friend, and he had no reason to be ashamed of that.

"Is that a squirrel?" Mido continued. "Wow, I always knew you were pathetic, but I had no idea you'd sink this low. Do you really think a squirrel can make up for your missing fairy? I bet he's just there 'cause he's too dumb to know better."

Link continued walking, tight-lipped, his arms trembling at his side. He ground his teeth together, willing himself not to cry. He couldn't let Saria see him cry. He couldn't let Rocky see him cry. They were friends, and he needed to be strong.

"Poor little squirrel," Mido said. "It's not his fault you're a rotten loser. I can teach him better, though." And then Link actually looked at the older boy for the first time since coming back from the forest. Mido lounged against the side of his house, one arm stretched casually over his head. In his other dangled a sling. A loaded sling.

"Get down, Rocky," Link whispered, but his friend couldn't understand.

"Hey, ya dumb squirrel!" Mido called. "There's a reason he don't have a fairy!"

Link reached again for the squirrel, but before his hand came even half-way up, Mido lunged forward. Link blinked. Before his eyes re-opened, something blew through the air beside him, and the horrifying crunch he would ever hear in his life tremored through his ear, into his skull.

He stood rooted to the ground, unwilling to open his eyes, unwilling to stir. Words that might have meant something echoed around him.

_"..tryin'ta scare a bit.."_

_ "..please don't... Saria..."_

_ "stupid stupid stupid"_

_ "Link!"_

This last voice, spoken with gentle familiarity, pierced through his veil.

"Link, are you okay?" Saria said, placing her stupid useless hand on his shoulder.

He opened his eyes. Rocky lay before him, his once-eager face a mess of indistinguishable red and brown.

"Link, I can't help you if you don't tell me what's wrong."

(_help__)_

Yes, he could do that. He could help Rocky. Saria had taught him how. He just had to get him to Saria's house. He'd take him to Saria's house and fix up that icky paste and he'd be all right. It'd sting like a birch tree (whatever that meant) but he'd be all right because Saria'd taught him how to heal and friends healed each other.

Swiftly as he dared, he lifted up his friend and carried him to the cozy house that was home and comfort and safety. Something made soft noises behind him, but he didn't care. He entered, set Rocky on the counter, then started crushing the special blade-like leaves into a paste.

"Link, that won't work," Saria said.

Link kept working.

She grabbed his arm, but he shoved her away. He brought the bowl of mush over to Rocky as he ground it further, trying to figure out where he would spread the paste. The squirrel's chest quivered. He was still breathing!

"He's in pain," Saria said.

"Then help me!" he screamed. "Help me!" he shouted in the loudest voice he'd ever dared to summon. "You're the healer so fix him!"

Inch by inch, her small, trembling hands worked their way to the squirrel.

"What are you waiting for? Can't you see he's hurting?"

She touched the squirrel's head-

_-twisted-_

* * *

><p>"He's at peace now," said a soft voice, dead as the orange fall leaves. "He doesn't hurt."<p>

Rocky...

"Please try to understand. There was nothing I could do. Some wounds..."

"Why?" Link demanded when his tears let up enough.

"Why couldn't I save him?"

"Just... why? Why... anything?"

"Everything has to die."

He thought of the giant forest, so full of plants and berries and animals.

_Everything has to die._

"Why."

Saria patted his shoulder, but it only reminded him...

"Are you going to die?" he asked.

The girl took both his hands in his, and as he looked into her life-green eyes he could almost feel there was an end to the darkness.

"The Great Deku Tree protects the Kokiri. We never die."

"Promise me," Link sobbed. "Promise me you won't. Promise we'll be friends forever." He hugged her tight, unwilling to lose the only life remaining to him.

"Forever and ever," the girl whispered. "Until the end of time."

* * *

><p>Saria watched her young charge bury his pet squirrel. She should be happy that he had moved on. She should be happy that she had given him hope.<p>

The girl blinked back silent tears.

The Deku's Tree protection only extended to the Kokiri.


	2. Chapter 2

**Story II**

Solra sat on a stump, crusted over with moss, seemingly ancient as the forest itself. His fingers ran idly over the cover of a thick leather-bound book. A faint circular diagram of startling complexity was etched across the red-brown binding. At the top, three words, popping out and inlaid with what tainted gold: _Gears of Time_.

The Kokiri boy stared into a bonfire as he pondered the unthinkable.

"It harms no one," said the girl standing across from him, "And one choice may always be reversed." She, only she among the Kokiri, had short, green hair, the color of autumn grass, of moss creeping upon cold limestone. Solra had never truly noticed her before, always thought she was just another girl, annoying as all the others. But that simply could not be true. Saria was as tied to the threads of time as their new visitor.

"It could harm-" He cut himself off, swallowed. "-the boy. If the others learned what was in here..."

"Now I think you're just being silly," Saria said.

She was right. Only two people in the forest knew, and no one would be bored enough to just read the book. He knew all this. He knew the book was no longer dangerous.

Even so, the cold hand of fear crawled up his spine, striking at his heart.

It had begun innocently enough. At least, as innocently as things ever happen, deep in the Lost Woods, where all those who wander are indeed lost, and linger only briefly before they pass into shadow.

A man in a majestic purple cloak, buttoned up to the neck, despite the humidity. Upon his back, a great bag, larger almost than the man himself. Wooden masks decorated, colorful, carved into a countless variety of shapes.

"You lost, mister?" Solra had asked, dangling from the branch of a tree.

"Lost?" the man echoed. He stared off to the side of the boy, as if considering. "Unless I am very much mistaken, I stand in the Lost Woods, which is a good deal closer to my destination than where I started. Now, as to where I am in the Lost Woods...

"I would never had entered, had I not thought I could work around its charms. Alas, I was wrong. It appears I am, indeed lost."

"I could getcha out," Solra offered. "Maybe. If you got anything useful in that pack of yours." It was books he really wanted, but how often did forest travelers just carry books around with them? Not nearly often enough.

He leaped down from the branch, but the man stepped backward, eyes blazing.

"Do not touch my gear," he commanded. Solra had (barely) gotten used to the Deku Tree's great, all-encompassing bass tones, but this voice, thin and small as it was, projected a different sort of power. Solra stopped short, and for the briefest of instants he worried that this stranger might be able to do something to him, despite the Great Deku Tree's promise.

"I'm not helping you for free, mister. Maybe if you was some starving mom it'd be different, but you look like you could take a hit. C'mon, what's a bit of tasty food, or a few rupees, or even a book if you got one?"

As suddenly as the hard anger had invaded his face, it gave way to an amused smile. The man shot a glance skyward, then reached back into his pack.

"A book? I'm surprised you can even read. But it seems I got lost here for a reason." So saying, he produced the most wonderful-looking book Fado had every seen. It was not just some tied together sheaves of paper, or a moth-eaten collection of recipes. There was a binding, a decorated cover, large crisp pages almost the size of his torso.

"Does this meet your price, toll-master?" the man said.

"Who are you?" Solra asked, accepting the book with wonder. Normal people didn't just carry something like that with them, not when going through the woods, alone.

"Why, I'm the Happy Mask Salesman," he said, spreading his arms wide. "I sell happy masks!" His eyes twinkled, and a hearty grin spread upon his face. Then the warmth fell away. "Or I would, if I could get out of here."

It was simple work to guide him to the border, the line that Solra must not cross. He bore the large book the whole way, but in his elation it seemed light as a leaf.

* * *

><p>"Are you sure you can't tell me?" Saria asked after some time. The sun had weakened, highlighting the sky with purplish hues, and still the fire burned.<p>

"You know too much already," Solra said, "And I think you'll guess the rest anyway. But..."

"The Great Deku Tree, then. He would counsel you, if you asked."

Solra shook his head. He had thought so too, at first. Now, he was afraid, not of the imposing guardian of the forest, but of what the ancient being might say. Of what more Solra might learn.

"I am one of the Know-It-All Brothers. I should not be afraid of the truth, but I am. "If the universe can speak so clearly, then how does... it doesn't make any sense. But it does, it must!"

He had thought the book a joke, at first. There was no reason to think of time as gear-like, for one, but more importantly, it was simply unreasonable for the universe to override all its laws just to send a message.

And so he had put it at the bottom of the bookshelf, but not before he had read enough to learn of the star pattern that emerges at the renewal of a cycle.

The next night, he looked up and saw his doom writ upon the night sky.

_A coincidence_, he told himself. _The stars will always have some arrangement, and someone will always claim it has meaning_.

But also he remembered the text, scrawled out in finest calligraphy: 'Should the universe choose to speak, the mortals are powerless to refuse the message.'

In other words: Prophecy makes itself heard, whether or not you read a lot of fancy books. Or maybe the universe would just _send_ you a fancy book so you knew an omen when you saw it.

As he wandered the Lost Woods to clear his head, he came upon a woman, great with child, struggling to walk through the dense forest.

_I'm not helping you for free, mister. Maybe if you was some starving mom it'd be different, _he had said just the night before, but that was stupid, he said lots of things, and anyway-

"Go," he told his fairy. "Find the Deku Tree. Bring help." He might have pretended he hadn't seen her, but events were falling into a pattern, and he feared to upset it.

As he feared to upset this new bond between Saria and the boy, the first boy ever brought in from the outside, the first Hylian ever to live under the Deku Tree, guided by the one girl with hair of green who alone among the Kokiri came to the Forest Temple to pray.

Once you heard the Gears of Time, you could not unhear their grinding.

"I am not a prophet," Solra said, and cast the book into the flames.

May Farore forgive him.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:** If you have something to say regarding the timeline, I _really_ don't care.

* * *

><p><strong>Story III<strong>

Mido tore through the forest, unthinking. Afraid to think. He was just having fun, that was all. The stone should've gone way over the stupid squirrel's head, and Link would've had that scared, pathetic look again, and Mido would've had a nice laugh. That's what was supposed to happen.

Then everything went wrong.

Being the leader of the Kokiri would only protect him from so much. Saria actually _cared_ for the kid, for whatever reason, and if she thought he'd gone too far in his pranks...

Realization impacted him, and he ground to a halt, frozen in horror.

What would the Deku Tree think? What would he do? Because of course he'd find out. No one'd ever taught Link the rules—that you didn't just complain to the Deku Tree about Kokiri problems—and Saria was _outside_ the rules, in some way he couldn't understand. They'd snitch. They'd snitch on their leader.

"I'll teach them to be disloyal," he muttered, but the words rang empty. What could he do against Saria? If the Deku Tree- _When _the Deku Tree found out, he might not be able to do anything against anyone. What if he got banished to the Lost Woods? What if he got banished _outside_ the Lost Woods?

"It was just a damn squirrel!" he bellowed to the uncaring trees. They did not respond. The still was so deep, he heard the pulse of his heart, the grinding of his teeth, the flutter of wings that hailed the arrival of his companion.

"Go away," he growled.

The ball of blue light remained silent and came to rest upon his shoulder.

"You can't help," he told her, but even as he spoke, he felt the aura of peace emanating from Pimli, soothing his fears.

"It was an accident," she said at length.

"Idiot shoulda _ducked_ anyway-"

"But the Deku Tree still wants to see you."

That was fast. How did he know? How did he find out so soon?

"Now?"

Pimli chimed her acknowledgement.

Mido pushed himself to his feet. His fairy companion had banished most of his fears, and he buried the rest under a facade of cocky recklessness. He was still the leader, dammit, and he was going to act like one.

As he passed back through his little village, he tried not to let the whispers bother him. They were too quiet for him to make out, but he knew what they'd be saying.

_"__He killed Link's pet. Actually _killed_ it!" _And-

"_Mido's really going too far with the kid, isn't he?"_ And-

"_I told ya he was a big meanie."_

Whatever. They'd still listen to him anyway. They always did.

But one of the girls—one of the _annoying _ones, Remi or something—had the gall to run up and actually _ask _him about it.

"Hey Mido, did you really-"

"Yes," he cut in, with a fire he was sure would cower her. He kept walking, never even slowing down.

"But what about-"

"Shut. Up."

Remi obeyed.

At last he finally reached the copse of trees which guarded the entrance to the Great Deku Tree's Meadow. He paused, steadied his breathing.

"You'll be okay," Pimli whispered. "He cares for all Kokiri. He just wants to talk to you."

"I wasn't worried," Mido lied. Then he squared his shoulders and entered.

* * *

><p>Though the Great Deku Tree's Meadow was open to all Kokiri, very few ever entered, save for festivals or ceremonies. It would not be fair to say that the children were frightened of the forest's guardian. Awed, over-awed perhaps, but never frightened.<p>

The sentient tree stood twice as tall as any other Mido had seen, and wider around than a house. When he first saw him, Mido thought he was no more than a tree that had grown impressively large. But he soon noted the clusters of leaves forming its eyebrows, the rough cut of its mouth, and then its impossibly deep, ponderous voice hailed him, and chased out all doubt that remained.

Now, countless years later, Mido knew the Deku Tree's wisdom. The great tree knew him, knew he had done wrong, and now stood in judgment over him.

The Kokiri approached without flinching.

"Mido," that impossible voice said, resounding through the clearing that now felt not nearly large enough. "Mari has spoken unto me a tale most concerning. I would hear it recounted from thy lips. I would hear your truth of this day."

The boy hesitated, trying to find the right words. The tree seemed to exude a sense of timelessness, as though he could wait all day for Mido to speak, and it would be as but the blink of his eye. It was for his own sake that Mido rushed to compose himself. In that giant meadow, he felt _small_.

"So Link's been hangin' out with this squirrel, yeah? And that's just not healthy. You gotta..." he searched for a grown-up word that Solra might use. "You gotta get socialized. Spend too much time hanging out with squirrels, and pretty soon you're begging for nuts with 'em."

Mido had no idea what the Deku Tree thought of this story, or even if he was paying attention. He just sat there, looking... tree-like. Mido babbled on.

"So I was just tryin' to scare him a little, you know? I thought, maybe if I whizzed a stone by that squirrel's head he'd spook, maybe leave some scratches or something on Link's shoulder as he ran off. I didn't mean to kill him. Hell, I hear it was _Saria_ who did that. For all we know, he might've lived."

He hadn't noticed he'd sworn until the word was already out, and then he could only stand stupidly, waiting for the tree's judgment. It felt like the entire forest was holding its breath. The breeze stilled, the butterflies in the meadow rested in the tall grass, and even the sounds of the forest animals ceased. Mido felt his feet take root in the ground, connecting him to the earth beneath, as a timeless age passed.

When the Great Deku Tree spoke again, it was as a low rumble emanating from the forest.

"There is a tale thou shouldst hear, young Mido. Hast thou heard the Legend of Zelda."

He had heard the name before, certainly.

"She was some queen, right?" he tried.

"A thousand queens, and one," the great tree said. "But I would tell thee of a certain Zelda, the first of her name, a great princess who lived when I was but a sapling. Wouldst thou listen?"

Mido nodded. It wasn't like he could say 'no.'

"Now this Zelda had a brother, whose name history has long forgotten, and those who know do not speak it. The prince stayed awake night, after night, worrying over his land, for he perceived that the seal laid o'er a great evil was weakening. This prince purposed in his heart that this evil would never again threaten his people, no matter the cost. And so the prince turned to his sister.

"Upon their father's death, the King had whispered to Zelda the location of the Triforce of Wisdom, that relic of the goddesses. That alone, he told himself, would give him the strength to fight that which was sealed.

"And so he came unto his sister, and begged of her the location of that relic. But Zelda had promised to reveal it only to her heir, and she saw the rashness in his heart that would bring them to ruin. She did not yield, not even to his sternest demands, or most desperate pleas. And so he had her placed into a slumber, that she might think on her actions.

"But the prince's magics were too dark, and the slumber too deep. Even now, she lies preserved in the castle of Hyrule, dreaming of an awakening.

"Verily, the prince had no malice, in his heart, nor evil, when he made this choice. He loved his sister, and when he realized his error, I fear his mind never healed. He acted on love of his people, and fear for his safety, but his dark choice echoes through time to this very age.

"Dost thou understand?"

Mido did not understand. He _never_ understood the Deku Tree, because he always talked in ancient riddles. A prince put his sister to sleep? What did that even mean? Was he saying Mido was like the prince? All he did was kill a squirrel. It didn't even look healthy!

"I see that this tale is above you," the Deku Tree said. "Mayhap wisdom shall come in time."

"Are you... angry?" Mido said, and winced at how pathetic he sounded. But he couldn't take the pressure anymore. He had to know what was going on behind that unmoving wooden face.

"My anger is not for thee, child," he said, after another suffocating pause. "I love thee, as I love all my children. Now go, and act upon thy best judgment. I trust that by now, thou knowest what is right from that which is wrong."

Mido back-stepped until he was out of the Deku Tree's sight, then turned and sprinted away from everything.

* * *

><p>Link knelt before the ancient Forest Temple. Saria had only brought him there once before. On a normal day, he thought he might have been impressed by its gravity. As it was he felt numb. His soul was tired, and the persistent ache in his arm had long since passed from his awareness.<p>

The trowel dropped from his hand. He had never worked near that hard in his entire life. A tiny part of his mind whispered that it was good to know he was so capable. The rest of him screamed for that voice of light to just shut up.

Arms trembling, he lowered his squirrel friend into the fresh grave. He lined his head with a wreath of acorns and bent down to pat his head one last time.

Soft boots rustled the leaves behind him. Link spun around to see Mido picking his way slowly into the Sacred Forest Meadow. He felt his hands constrict into fists. If Mido said _anything_, he'd start punching and not stop, no matter what Saria said.

The other boy approached. Opened his mouth, closed it again.

"Mido, that's enough," Saria said, stirring from that special stump where she always sat.

Mido whirled on her.

"I'm tryin' to apologize, you idiot," he snapped. As soon as the words escaped his mouth, a grimace of pain flashed over his face. "Wait, I didn't mean-" he cut himself off with a growl of frustration.

"Look, I'm sorry about your stupid squirrel, okay?"

Then Mido's fairy began whispering something in his ear too soft for Link to hear, and the boy stormed away, kicking shrubbery as he went.

Link bent over the grave and cried once more.

* * *

><p>Mido collapsed on his bed, massaging his knuckles. He had punched, slapped, and kicked whatever sturdy objects he could find until his hands were sore, and then he kept at it for some time. He hadn't been looking forward to apologizing to the boy, but he knew that Saria would know if he didn't, so he'd tried to swallow his pride.<p>

But it just wasn't good enough for her, and then he'd gone and called her an idiot. At the memory, he rose up and slammed his fist with all his force into his mattress. How could he have been so stupid? All he'd had to do was say 'sorry' and walk away, but then he insulted Saria and yelled at Link.

None of this would have happened if that dummy hadn't somehow manage to steal all Saria's attention. She was the Deku Tree's favorite, and he was the leader of the Kokiri; of course they should be together. It was obvious to everyone. But then the brat came along—from _outside—_and ruined everything.

Mido closed his eyes and let his exhaustion overwhelm him.

This wasn't over.


End file.
